The Residence Reflection
by theawkwardanglophile
Summary: Sheldon and Amy are about to close a chapter in their lives. Set post-series. Ridiculous amounts of fluff. You've been warned! ;)


Amy stood frozen in the apartment, using all of her energy to drink in the setting before her. She needed to remember every detail: the way the light came in the window in the morning, the gentle hum of the air conditioner, and that scent. That scent that couldn't be completely defined but always reminded her she was home, more home than she'd ever been before in her life.

It was moving day, and the apartment was now empty. The gang had been a huge help, well, most of the gang. An eight-months-pregnant Penny mostly ate the donuts Sheldon and Amy had purchased for everyone while having fun trying to boss the guys around.

But now it was just Sheldon and Amy left in 4B. The rest of the group decided to give them a little time to say goodbye before meeting up at the new house, a cute little bungalow not too far from Caltech. The most wondrous thing about the house is that the moment they walked in it for the first time, they both agreed that it felt like them, as difficult as it was for Sheldon to admit. It was an equal amalgamation of who they were. As scary as the idea of moving on was, they knew they had to snatch it up immediately, especially before Amy got too far along in her pregnancy.

She smiled, thinking of their future little one. She still couldn't believe it was happening. Plus, she had gotten her wish that she and Penny would be pregnant together, and their kids could grow up together. Amy hadn't planned on it, in fact, she'd all but given up on that idea, but an unexpectedly passionate ending to the night of their Nobel ceremony had changed all that.

Thankfully, the move hadn't proven to be too straining on her. Packing up a one-bedroom apartment wasn't that difficult, and the furniture that was Penny's was given back to her. Amy and Sheldon decided they needed a fresh start, new furniture for a new house, rather than leftovers from Penny's single, twenty-something old life.

"Alright, I did a final walkthrough and everything is out," Sheldon stated as he came out of the bedroom. But his wife gave no acknowledgment she had heard him. "Amy?"

She remained frozen with her back turned to him. He came up to her and gently wrapped his arms around her from behind, his hands resting on her ever-growing stomach. It was something he had started doing when she first began to show, but it had since become his favorite affectionate maneuver, one he planned to continue even after the baby was born. He loved the secure feel of her, the scent of her hair strong at his nose, his chin resting either on her head or shoulder. This time it was her shoulder.

"Are you alright?"

Amy smiled, relishing in the feel of him cocooning her. It had become one of her favorite things he did. "I will be. I'm just going to miss this place so much. I want to remember every detail about it."

"Well, if your memory fails, my eidetic one can help fill in the gaps."

"Thank you. I know it's just an apartment, but this was special." Amy swiped at the tears that were beginning to fall. "I didn't want to cry again!"

She turned around and buried her face in Sheldon's chest while he continued to hold her. He'd become somewhat accustomed to emotional outbursts from Amy over the past several months. After panicking the first few times, and receiving stern words of advice from Leonard and Penny along the lines of "stop talking to us and go comfort your wife!", he'd learned the best thing to do was just to hold her and listen to her.

While sometimes she got upset over something trivial, this moment was anything but. Amy was right, this _was_ special. It had taken everything in him to move in here. His old apartment had been the biggest safety net in his life. It contained his spot, and his carefully crafted routines with Leonard had become second nature. He walked away from all of it.

It was one of his best decisions ever.

This home he'd had for nearly four years was a stamp of his bravery, a symbol that he could branch out and go beyond his own self-imposed limitations. And he had. Since then, he'd married, won a Nobel prize alongside the love of his life, and in just a few short months their daughter would be born. Their new house was just the next step in branching out. It was painful at times, and even the happy milestones had still stretched Sheldon farther than he'd ever anticipated, but he knew he was better off this way.

Amy sniffled as she began to compose herself. "Thank you, Sheldon. I'm okay, really. I should be checking if _you're_ ok. Are you?"

She knew how difficult change was for Sheldon, but this time around it hadn't been quite so bad. Maybe it was because he was so preoccupied taking care of Amy during her pregnancy he hadn't had much opportunity to dwell on what they were about to do.

"I am. I believe we are doing the right thing. Plus, since Raj is moving in here, we can still see it from time to time, assuming his dog doesn't pee over the entire apartment."

Amy giggled. "Raj knows better than to _ever_ give you that information."

Sheldon grimaced.

Amy quickly changed the subject. "So, before we go, tell me your favorite memory from living here."

A groan escaped from her husband. "Amy, you know you can't ask a question like that out of nowhere. A question like that requires reflection and deliberation…."

"Ok, fine, it's no big deal. Sorry I asked, I was just curious—"

"And with so many contenders! Apart from the obvious big moments, there is still when I first saw you in your wedding dress, the night we fixed our Super Asymmetry paper, let's see….."

"Just one favorite, any favorite, any significant memory here! Just pick one," Amy said, exasperated.

"Fine. The first time we ate eggplant parmesan here."

"Huh?" It was definitely not what Amy expected him to say.

"That was the day I made the choice to stay here with you, in our apartment. I stood outside the door and referenced Buridan's donkey, you handed me an eggplant so I wouldn't starve to death, and I brought the eggplant inside so you could make dinner."

Amy's eyes crinkled as the memories flooded back. "And you told me over dinner that you were staying," she said softly. "You don't know how happy I was to hear that."

Sheldon nodded. "It was an important day. It led to everything else that's happened since."

"See? You _can_ make decisions, great ones, in fact."

"I never said I couldn't. I just said it takes time to weigh them carefully."

Amy rolled her eyes. "It was a compliment."

"Oh, right. Thank you. Yes, great decisions with many more to come. I only wish our child could know this home."

"Me, too, but we took plenty of pictures to document it properly, and we will mention it to her whenever we can. We'll tell her all about Mommy and Daddy's first home together."

"Must we make our titles so juvenile? Mom and dad would suffice, or mother and father."

"Oh, no, I'm not budging on this one, honey. We're Mommy and Daddy. You better get used to it."

"I suppose I will," Sheldon grumbled with a hint of a smile. Honestly, his child could address him as "hey, nerd" and he'd still want to give her the world.

They headed to the door where their bags were gathered and took one more meaningful look around, hands intertwined.

"Are you ready?" Amy asked as she kissed his cheek.

Sheldon gave a quick nod, as he started to feel a slight lump in his throat.

With a gentle pull of the door, their chapter of 4B was officially closed, but as they descended via elevator one final time as residents, they both knew grand, new adventures were well on their way.

* * *

**Do you ever have a moment of pure, umprompted inspiration? That's what this story is. It came to me out of nowhere, and with such clarity. So, here it is for all of you, and I hope you enjoy it. I loved getting to include my headcanon of #nobelnightShamybaby! Whatever you thought of the story, please leave a review to let me know! Thanks for reading, friends!**


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